Connector-spacer and floor construction using same

ABSTRACT

An improved floor construction and an improved top connectorspacer or connector for use in such floor construction is provided wherein the floor construction is comprised of a plurality of channel members arranged in parallel relation and has at least one bottom connector fastening the bottom portions of the channel members together in spaced relation to provide a substantially unobstructed passage between each immediately adjacent pair of channel members. The top connector holds the top portions of adjacent channel members in spaced relation and such top connector comprises a main body which has spacing means extending downwardly therefrom and between each immediately adjacent pair of channel members and also comprises means for fastening the top connector to associated ones of the channel members.

United States Patent [191 Vickstrom 3,722,474 [451 Mar. 27, 1973 CONNECTOR-SPACER AND FLOOR CONSTRUCTION USING SAME Primary Eraminer-Hugh R. Chamblcc [75] Inventor: Donald E. Vickstrom, Richmond, Attorney-John CGhmn ct ABSTRACT An improved floor construction and an improved top connector-spacer or connector for use in such floor construction is provided wherein the floor construc- W 5 m m o C M 1 V 7 ,9 M1 M0 3 s .u 8 8k u RR A a e m S e s .d A F 1 .1 3 2 7 2 I rll tion is comprised of a plurality of channel members 1 pp 0 arranged in parallel relation and has at least one bottom connector fastening the bottom portions of the channel members together in spaced relation to pro- [52] US. 52/334 [51] Int. 01/00 vide a ub tantially unobstructed passage between Fleld of Search each immediately adjacent pair of channel members.

The top connector holds the top portions of adjacent channel members in spaced relation and such top con- [5 6] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS nector comprises a main body which has spacing means extending downwardly therefrom and between each immediately adjacent pair of channel members 1/1966 Conover..........;....

119/28 and also comprises means for fastening the top con- ---52/334 X nector to associated ones of the channel members. .......119/28 ...l19/2 8 6 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures T. m w ma 0 CTJ 660 667 999 111 5 9 67 763 9 3 8108 2532 2 2 5 3333 PATH-HFUHAR 2 7 I973 FIG. 3

OR. STROM '1. 0e 1 T mm NE D L A N O D HIS ATTORNEYS CONNECTOR-SPACER AND FLOOR CONSTRUCTION USING SAME BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In providing floor constructions for animal enclosures used to raise animals in confinement and using light weight channel members, see U. S. Pat. No. 3,528,391, for example, it is necessary that such floor constructions be easy to construct and maintain, are economical, provide adequate support for animals while assuring that the animals may move thereon in a satisfactory manner without slippage, and allow materials such as spilled food, animal wastes, etc., to flow easily through each floor construction into an associated receptacle arranged therebeneath to receive such materials. In connecting channel members of the character mentioned, it is common practice to employ connecting devices or connectors which engage and fasten the bottom portions of such channel members together in spaced relation. However, in applications where comparatively large animals are expected to be kept on the particular floor construction, it is desirable to provide added support for the top portions of the channel members and it is desirable that such top members be of simple and economical construction and easy to install either during or after associated channel members have been fastened together in the usual manner employing bottom connectors.

SUMMARY This invention provides an improved floor construction comprised of channel members and an improved top connector in the form of a connector-spacer. The top connector is particularly adapted to support and hold the top portions of such channel members in spaced relation and has a main body and spacing means extending downwardly from such main body and between each immediately adjacent pair of channel members comprising a particular floor construction. The top connector also has means for fastening such connector to associated ones of the channel members.

Other details, uses, and advantages of this invention will become apparent as the following description of the embodiments thereof presented in the accompanying drawing proceeds.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a perspective view with parts in cross section and parts broken away illustrating a portion of an embodiment of a floor construction of this invention which utilizes inverted substantially U-shaped channel members and one embodiment of a top connector of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the top connector illustrated in FIG. 1 with a central portion thereof broken away;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the connector illustrated in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a side view similar to FIG. 2 illustrating another exemplary embodiment of a top connector which may be utilized interchangeably with the connector of FIG. 2 in the floor construction illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary top plan view of the top connector of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 6 is a plan view illustrating an enlarged fragmentary portion of the connector of FIG. 4 and showing, by dotted lines, a portion of material used to make a typical spacing tab of such connector.

DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENTS Reference is now made to FIG. 1 of the drawing which illustrates one exemplary embodiment of the floor construction of this invention which is designated generally by the reference numeral 20. The floor construction or floor 20 is comprised of a plurality of inverted substantially U-shaped channel members 21 which are suitably fastened together in spaced side-byside parallel relation by a plurality of bottom connector-spacers 22 and a plurality of top connector-spacers 23 and the connector-spacers 22 and 23 will be referred to hereinafter simply as connectors 22 and 23 respectively.

The floor construction 20 is particularly adapted for use in raising animals such as poultry, swine, cattle, and the like, in confinement and the structural details of the components of floor construction 20 and, in particular, of the top connectors 23 will be described in detail subsequently. Further, with the use of top connectors 23, the floor construction 20 is particularly useful in raising comparatively large animals, such as swine weighing 600 pounds and over, for example, in confinement without damage to the floor construction.

The channel members 21 have opposite end portions 24 which are preferably supported on a suitable supporting structure comprising the animal enclosure and, in this example, each end portion 24 is supported on an associated substantially planar horizontal ledge 25 of a supporting concrete wall 26. The channel members 21 and floor construction 20 are thus supported in position over a suitable conventional pit, tank, or troughlike structure (not shown) which is adapted to receive any material, such as animal wastes, which drop through the floor construction 20 and each pit may be cleaned of any accumulation therein using known techniques.

Each exemplary channel member 21 comprises a bight 30 defining a top load-carrying wall 30 which has a pair of downwardly extending side walls 31 adjoining opposite side edges 32 of the top wall 30. Each member 21 also has a pair of inwardly directed fastening flanges 33 each adjoining a lower edge 34 of an associated side wall 31 and the fastening flanges 33 extend inwardly toward each other.

As seen in FIG. 1, the side walls 31 of each member 21 converge downwardly from the top wall 30 thereof toward each other whereby each member 21 has a width indicated at 35 between its lower edges 34 which is no greater than the width indicated at 36 of the top load-carrying wall 30. In this example, the width 35 is substantially less than the width 36 whereby it will be seen that each immediately adjacent pair of channel members 21 has a downwardly diverging passage 40 defined therebetween by an associated pair of side walls 31 and each downwardly diverging passage 40 assures unobstructed flow of material through the floor construction 20.

Each member 21 has non-skid means provided on its top wall 30 and, in this example, such non-skid means is defined by a plurality of upwardly extending projections 41 with each immediately adjacent pair of projections having a roughly rectangular groove or channel 42 arranged therebetween. The projections 41 are defined as an integral part of the top wall 30; however, it will be appreciated that suitable non-skid means may be fastened to a substantially smooth top wall similar to the top wall 30 using any suitable technique known in the art.

Each bottom connector 22 has a main body 43 and a plurality of upwardly and laterally extending fastening legs 44. Each fastening leg 44 defines a recess 45 which is adapted to receive an end portion of an associated fastening flange 33 of a channel member therewithin.

Each channel member 21 is preferably made of a resilient metallic material such as an aluminum alloy which provides normal resiliency therefor and such resilient material enables the lower or bottom end portions of the side walls 31 to be spread apart at a location adjacent a set of fastening legs 44. This spreading action may be accomplished by camming the terminal ends of the flanges 33 against upwardly inclined surfaces which may be provided on the fastening legs 44 or by using any suitable technique or tool which'enables the innermost edges of the fastening flanges 33 to be spread apart to a dimension wider than the dimension indicated at 46, for example. Once the end edges of the flanges 33 are moved opposite associated recesses 45 and released, the normal resiliency of the channel member 21 causes the previously spread side walls 31 to return to their initial positions with the inner end portions of the flanges 33 received within associated recesses 45 and with the flanges 33 in embracing holding engagement against the fastening legs 44.

In this example, the channel members are fastened together in pairs by connectors 33. Each immediately adjacent pair of channel members 21 are then fastened together by one or more overlapping bottom connectors 22, such as the connector 22 indicated at 47 in FIG. 1.

As previously indicated, the floor construction is particularly adapted for supporting heavy loads, such as heavy animals thereon, and to provide optimum structural integrity for such floor construction a plurality of top connectors 23 are provided. Each connector 23 is of simple and economical construction as will be apparent from the following description.

In particular, each top connector 23 has a main body 50 (see FIGS. 2 and 3) and spacing means designated generally by the reference numeral 51 extending downwardly from the main body 50. Each spacing means 51 is particularly adapted to extend between an immediately adjacent pair of channel members 21 to provide a top spacing and lateral supporting function for associated channel members 21.

Each top connector 23 also has means for fastening such connector to associated ones of the channel members and, in this example, the fastening means is defined as a plurality of openings 52 through the main body 50. Each opening 52 is adapted to receive an associated fastener 53 therethrough to fix the top connector 23 to a particular channel member 21 and against a plurality of associated channel members 21. The fastener may be of any suitable type and in this example is in the form of a threaded screw 53 which extends through an associated opening 52 and has a washer 54 associated therewith. The screw 53 may be suitably detachably fastened in position utilizing a conventional threaded nut or may be threadedly received in an associated threaded opening in the top load-carrying wall 30 of an associated channel member 21.

The top connector 23 is in the form of a single strip having the spacing means defined as a downwardly extending undulation S1 in the main body 50. The main body 50 also has a substantially uniform width as indicated at 55 throughout its length and each downwardly extending undulation has a substantially U-shaped configuration when viewed from an end thereof and is defined by'a lowermost bight 56 adjoined by a pair of vertically extending legs 57 and each undulation 51 extends completely across the width 55. The top connector 23 may also be provided with a substantially L-shaped portion 60 adjacent its terminal ends and such L-shaped portion enables an associated pair of connectors 23 to be arranged in abutting end-to-end relation while still providing spacing and lateral support of adjacent channel members.

Another exemplary embodiment of a top connector of this invention is illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 of the drawing. The top connector illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 is very similar to the connector 23; therefore, such connector will be designated generally by the reference numeral 23A and parts of such connector which are very similar to corresponding parts of the connector 23 will be designated by the same numeral as the connector 23 also followed by the letter designation A and not described again. Only those component parts which are different from corresponding parts of the connector 23 will be designated by a new reference numeral also followed by the letter designation A and described in detail.

The connector 23A of FIGS. 4 and 5 has a main body 50A and the spacing means 51A thereof are in the form of a plurality of tabs 51A extending downwardly from a side edge 62A of the main body 50A. The main body 50A is a substantially rectangular portion and the tabs 51A are foldably connected to the edge 62A and have a channel-like spacing portion which is particularly adapted to extend vertically between a pair of associated channel members and such channel-like spacing portion has a substantially U-shaped configuration defined by a bight 63A foldably connected to an edge 62A of the main body 50A and a pair of vertically extending parallel legs 64A adjoining the opposite ends of the bight 63A.

Each tab 51A with its channel-like spacing portion is defined from a roughly T-shaped extension 65A as indicated by dotted lines in FIG. 6. The T-shaped extension 65A is preferably made as an integral part of the material defining the main body 50A and initially is arranged substantially coplanar with such main body. Each tab or spacing means is formed by suitably bending the T-shaped extension 65A.

The top connector 23A also has a plurality of fastening means or openings 52A extending through its main body 50A. Each opening 52A is adapted to receive an associated fastener such as a fastening screw 53 therethrough to fasten the connector 23A in position against associated channel members of a floor construction.

The top connectors 23 and 23A may be used interchangeably in a floor construction such as the floor construction 20, for example. Further, such top connectors may be made of any suitable material, however, such connectors are preferably made of high strength, light weight materials such as metallic materials and in particular metallic materials containing aluminum.

It will also be appreciated that the bottom connectors 22 and channel members 21 may be made from any suitable material using any suitable manufacturing technique. For example, the connectors 22 may be made by extrusion process while the channel members 21 may be made by extrusion, roll forming, or any other conventional technique.

In this example of the invention, the connectors 23 and 23A have been described as being used with channel members 21, with each channel member having a substantially U-shaped configuration. However, it will be appreciated that the top connectors 23 and 23A may be used with floor constructions which use channel members having other suitable cross-sectional configurations such as substantially E-shaped, etc.

The spacing means 51 and 51A each has a vertical height indicated at 66 and 66A respectively which is small compared to the overall height of associated channel members 21. It will be appreciated that this vertical height may be kept at a minimum inasmuch as it is necessary to engage only the top edge portions of the channel members.

With the use of top connectors having spacing means of the character described in this specification, it is not always necessary to attach each top connector to each channel member 21 of a particular floor construction. In some cases, for example, it may be sufficient to attach each connector to every other of the channel members. Nevertheless, such spacing means provides top lateral support as well as a spacing function for a particular floor construction regardless of the number of channel members to which the connector is attached in a particular floor construction.

While present exemplary embodiments of this invention, and methods of practicing the same, have been illustrated and described, it will be recognized that this invention may be otherwise variously embodied and practiced within the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A floor construction comprising: a plurality of channel members arranged in parallel relation; at least one bottom connector fastening the bottom portions of said channel members together in spaced relation to provide a substantially unobstructed passage between each immediately adjacent pair of channel members; and at least one top connector for holding the top portions of said channel members together in spaced relation, said top connector comprising a main body, and a plurality of spacing means each extending downwardly from said main body into an associated passage and having a height which is a small fractional part of the height of its associated passage, and means fastening said top connector to associated ones of said channel members, wherein each channel member is made of a resilient material providing a normal resiliency therefor and comprises a bight defining a top load-carrying wall, a pair of downwardly extending side walls adjoining 0ppo site side edges of said top load-carrying wall, and a pair of inward y directed fastening flanges each ad oining a lower edge portion of an associated wall and extending inwardly toward the other flange, each channel member having a width between the loweredges of its side walls which is no greater than the width of its top load-carrying wall; and said bottom connector comprising a main body and a plurality of upwardly and laterally extending fastening legs each defining a recess which has an associated fastening flange of a channel member received therewithin.

2. A floor construction as set forth in claim 1 in which said top connector is in the form of a single strip having said spacing means defined as a plurality of'undulations each extending downwardly from said main body.

3. A floor construction as set forth in claim 2 in which each downwardly extending undulation has a substantially U-shaped configuration when viewed from an end thereof.

4. A floor construction as set forth in claim 1 in which said top connector is in the form of a single strip having said spacing means defined as a plurality of tabs each extending downwardly from said main body.

5. A floor construction as set forth in claim 4 in which each of said tabs has an edge foldably connected to an edge of said main body and a channel-like spacing portion extending vertically into an associated passage.

6. A floor construction as set forth in claim 5 in which said channel-like portion has as a substantially U-shaped configuration. 

1. A floor construction comprising: a plurality of channel members arranged in parallel relation; at least one bottom connector fastening the bottom portions of said channel members together in spaced relation to provide a substantially unobstructed passage between each immediately adjacent pair of channel members; and at least one top connector for holding the top portions of said channel members together in spaced relation, said top connector comprising a main body, and a plurality of spacing means each extending downwardly from said main body into an associated passage and having a height which is a small fractional part of the height of its associated passage, and means fastening said top connector to associated ones of said channel members, wherein each channel member is made of a resilient material providing a normal resiliency therefor and comprises a bight defining a top load-carrying wall, a pair of downwardly extending side walls adjoining opposite side edges of said top load-carrying wall, and a pair of inwardly directed fastening flanges each adjoining a lower edge portion of an associated wall and extending inwardly toward the other flange, each channel member having a width between the lower edges of its side walls which is no greater than the width of its top loadcarrying wall; and said bottom connector comprising a main body and a plurality of upwardly and laterally extending fastening legs each defining a recess which has an associated fastening flange of a channel member received therewithin.
 2. A floor construction as set forth in claim 1 in which said top connector is in the form of a single strip having said spacing means defined as a plurality of undulations each extending downwardly from said main body.
 3. A floor construction as set forth in claim 2 in which each downwardly extending undulation has a substantially U-shaped configuration when viewed from an end thereof.
 4. A floor construction as set forth in claim 1 in which said top connector is in the form of a single strip having said spacing means defined as a plurality of tabs each extending downwardly from said main body.
 5. A floor construction as set forth in claim 4 in which each of said tabs has an edge foldably connected to an edge of said main body and a channel-like spacing portion extending vertically into an associated passage.
 6. A floor construction as set forth in claim 5 in which said channel-like portion has as a substantially U-shaped configuration. 